Sewing-machine ruffler.



H. H. RUSSELL.

SEWING MACHINE RUFFLER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 7-. 1911.

1,26 1,628. Patented Apr. 2, 1918.

314mm r01:

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HERBERT HPRUSSELL, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE GREIST MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT.

SEWING-MACHINE RUFFLER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 7, 1917. Serial No. 167,029.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HERBERT H. RUSSELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at New Haven, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented or discovered certain new and useful Improvements in Sewing-Machine Ruffiers, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawmg.

This invention relates to that class of sewing machine rufllers which are adapted for use .in making a rufiie or gather at each stitch,.or at each reciprocation of the needlebar of the sewing machine, or to make a ruflie or gather at longer intervals, as at each five reciprocations of the sewing machine needle-bar; these ruiflers being generally known as five-stitch rufliers, although they may be constructed to make a rufile or gather either at each stitch or at a greater or lesser number of stitches than five. The present invention has for its object to simplify the construction of rufliers of this class.

In carrying the present invention into effect a shiftable pawl-lever is employed, in connection witha ratchet wheel having deep and shallow notches, as heretofore, and

' which pawl-lever cooperates with a pendulous lever by which the rufiiing blade is actuated'; this shiftable pawl lever and its cooperating partsbeing of such construction thatthe pawl carried by said lever may engage the teeth of the ratchet wheel and a shoulder of the pendulous lever when fivestitch rufliing is to be performed, or may be shifted to a position to engage only the shoulder of the pendulous lever when plain work is to be done, or when a ruflie or gather is to be made at each stitch, in which latter case the ratchet wheel will be at rest. Also, if desired, the shiftable pawl-lever may be moved to aposition in which the pawl will not engage the teeth of the ratchet wheel, and in such case the ruflier may be thrown out of operation without removing it from the sewing machine, if it be desired to do plain sewing only.

In the accompanying drawing, Figures 1 and 2are opposite side views' of a ruffler embodying the presentinvention. Fig. 3 is a plan view and Fig. 4 an end view of'the same. Fi 5 is a detail planview showing the shifta le'pawl-lever in full and dotted 15' riveted or otherwise permanently attached to an upright portion of the frame 12. Also pivotally mounted on said stud or pin 15 is a pendulous or secondary lever 16 to the lower end of which the rufliing blade carrier 17 is jointed, the said lever 16 being provided at its top with a shoulder 18. The rufiiing-blade 17 is attached to the carrier 17 as usual. A ratchet wheel 19, having shallow notches 20, affording short radial teeth, and two deeper notches 21, affording longer radial teeth, is mounted for rotation on the stud or pin 15.

The operating lever 14 is constructed with a bent-over or horizontal portion 22 to which is attached a pin or rivet 23 passing through a portion of a shiftable pawl-lever 24 carrying a pawl 25 preferably formed integral with said lever and adapted to engage the teeth of the ratchet wheel 19 and the shoulder 18 on the pendulous lever 16, when five-stitch rufiling is to be done; or the said pawl-lever may be shifted laterally to the position denoted by the dotted lines min Fig. 5,56 that the pawl 25 will engage only the said shoulder 18 of said pendulous lever 16, when plain rufiiing or gathering is to be done; or, if desired, the said shiftable pawllever may be moved to the position indicated by dotted lines 3 in Fig.5, so that thepawl 25 cannot engage said shoulder 18 on the pendulous lever 16, and the rufliing blade i will then be thrown entirely out of action. When the shiftable pawl-lever 24 is in the position denoted by full linesin Fig. 5 the pawl 25 will be held out of engagement with the shoulder 18 on the pendulous lever 16 when said pawl rests in the shallow notches 20 of the ratchet wheel 19; but when the said wheel is partially rotated to bring one of the deeper notches 21 of said ratchetwheel beneath'tlre id w the latter will i descend "low enough to "engage the said stroke and thus retract, through the said ,pendulous-lever 16, therufliing blade carrier and ruifling blade. The contact 'screw 28, is threadedi n an car 29 on the operating lever "14;. l

The shiftablepawl lever 24 is pivoted,

7 so that it may be shifted laterally to diflerent'positions, on the pin or rivet 23, and the longer arm of said pawl-lever,; carrying thepawl 25, is forcedf'yieldingly downward by a'coil spring 31 interposed between the lower head of said rivet and the shorter arm of said pawl lever, the latter beingbent, as shown, so as to have a fulcrum bearing, slightly -rearward of the said coil spring, on the lower surface of the bent over or horizontal 'portion22 of the operating' lever 14. Thus the pawl 25 carried by thesaid'pawl-lever will be yieldingly forced downward into'engag'ement with the teeth of tli'e ratchet wheel 19, so as to intermittently rotate "the said "wheel, and also so that will, at proper times, bedepressed'so as to engage the's'houlder 18onthe pendulous lever 16. As the pawl-lever 2 1 is yieldinglyTfOrCed downward by the spring 31 thecpawl 25 WiIl-ridebackWard easily-over the'fteethof the ratchet-wheel 19 when the operating lever 14 rise'sfbackward rotation o'f-the 'saidratchet-wheel, when the said pawl is retracted, being. frictionally prevented, as is common in five-stitch rufiiers. Ifit be desired to throw the rudder out of action without'removing it from'the sewing machine this fmayv be done, as heretofore stated, by shiftingthefpawl-lever laterally orhorizonmll to the position denoted in dotted'lines. y in Fig. 5, the 'pawl'25 being at this time inipo'sition so that-it cannot engaggjthe: shoulder 18' on the pend-ulous lever 16.f Thete'r'mlaterally as herein employed to -idescr-ibe "thes'hiftirig "movements of the paw1 carrier o'r' paw1-1ever 25wi11 be understoodtofniean in a'direction transverse; to theline' of inovfnht of the'vv rk Q1 tothe lifieof 'ino'vem'ent oftheruiflin blade.

'The"'shiftable pa'wllever '24 will-be retained in the three positions referred'to by theffork 32 formed on a rearwardextensi'on of the 'operfating lever 14;, "as will be understdod 'from ,Figs. 4; aria-5, o thataccidental displacement of the fi'said shiftable pawllevr velg berprevefited "th said lever' is in either of the three positions denoted that the present invention provides a fivestitch rufl'ler of very simple construction,

in that "some parts heretofore necessary in the constructions of ruiilers of this character are "disp'ensedwvith by the use of the simple pawl-lever herein shown and described.

The feature, hereinbefore referred to, by which the rufiiingblade may be thrown-out of action without removing the ruilier from the sewing machine, or without disconnecting'the operating lever 1 1- from the needlebar of the sewing machine, is a desirable feature in sewing .machine rulilers in urn the range of work, including a ruiiling operation, is greatly widened. For example, it sometimes occurs that it is desirable to do plain stitching between groups of ruffles or gathers (with or. without removing the ruii'ling strip, which may, if desired, be stitched [down by plain sewing) without removing 'the rufiler from the sewing ma chine; and this can readily be effected,'with the present improved ruffler, simply by shi'ftingthepawl lever laterally to' the position denotedby dotted lines y in Fig-6, as hereinbefore explained.

When the pawl lever is in the position just referred to'the' pawl 25, carried by saidlever,'is in an inoperative relation both to the ratchet-wheel 19 and to'the shoulder 18 of thependulous lever 16. This capability of throwing the,

ruffling blade out of action without, .dis-

mounting or disconnecting therulfler from the sewing machineis therefor'eian important and valuable one.

H'aving thus described my invention I M claim and desire tosecure byfLetters Patent:

1. In a sewing machine rufiler, the comblnation with a ruiiiing blade and means, com

prising a pendulous lever provided.withea i shoulder, for operating saidru-fliingbla'de,

notches, and a shiftable,pawl-leveradapted to be'moved transversely 'to the v,plane of vof a ratchet wheelhaving deep an d shallow movement of Ithesaid pendulousllever so as y a to occupyfldifi'erent'lateral positions relative to said ratchet wheel. 7 p

2. 'In a sewing; machine rufli'e'r, the combi nation with a ruflling blade and means, comprising a pendulouslever providedwith a shoulder, lforoperating said ru'ffiing blade,

of a ratchet wheel having deepand shallow notches, and a shiftablelever adapted'to' be moved transversely to the plane of flmovement of said pendulous lever-so asto occupy different lateral positions relati ve 'lto I said ratchet wheel,..said shifta'ble :lever -having a pawl formed; integraltherewith.

uln ewing; e: rlifi er-, ithe:combiattached to said turned-over or horizontal portion of said operating lever so that it may be adjusted laterally to different positions, and means for retainin said pawl-lever in different positions of ad ustment.

4.. In a sewing machine rufller, the combination with a suitable frame, of an operating lever pivoted to said frame and having a turned-over or horizontal portion, a secondary or pendulous lever also pivoted to said frame and having a shoulder, a rufiling blade operatively connected with said pendulous lever, a ratchet-wheel having deep and shallow notches, a shiftable, spring pressed pawl-lever pivotally attached to said turnedover or horizontal portion of said operating lever so that it may be adjusted laterally to different positions, and means for retaining said pawl-lever in different positions of adjustment.

5. In a sewing machine rufller, the combination with a suitable frame, of an operating lever pivoted to said frame and having a turned-over or horizontal portion, a secondary or pendulous lever also pivoted to said frame and having a shoulder, a rufliing blade operatively connected with said pendulous lever, a ratchet-wheel having deep and shallow notches, a shiftable, springpressed, pawl-lever pivotally attached to said turned-over or horizontal portion of said operating lever so that it may be adjusted laterally to different positions, and means for retaining said pawl-lever in different positions of adjustment, said pawllever being bent so as to have a fulcrum bearing on the lower surface of said turnedover or horizontal portion of said operating lever.

6. In a sewing machine ruifier, the combination with a rufliing blade, and its carrier, of a pendulons lever having a shoulder, a ratchet-wheel for governing the frequency of operation of said ruffling blade, a pawl for intermittingly rotating said ratchetwheel and also arranged to engage said shoulder, when desired, and means for moving said pawl out of operative contact relation to said shoulder and ratchet-wheel and for holding said pawl in an inoperative position.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

HERBERT H. RUSSELL.

Witness H. M. GREIsT.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Eatents,

Washington, D. 0. 

